In just its second sentence, the Declaration of Independence declares “all men are created equal.”Try telling that to Rep. Tim Scott, however.Speaking recently in Berkeley County, he told constituents the exact opposite, says Bobbie Rose, Scott’s Democratic opponent in this year’s election for the 1st Congressional District.According to the Goose Creek Patch, Scott said “We’re faced with a president who believes that men and women … no matter their effort, should all be equal.”Scott was speaking about the Affordable Care Act, which he’s repeatedly argued against, and even attempted to have congress overrule in the very first bill he introduced to the U.S. House of Representatives.A former private insurance company agent himself, Scott added “You see, some of us believe in freedom. Others want equality.”However, Rose argues, you can’t have freedom without equality. And definitely not when it comes to healthcare, she says.“I am extremely proud that as an American, I am fortunate enough to have a President who ‘believes that men and women, no matter their effort…should all be equal,’” Rose says.“I affirm that idea because equality means alike in value and merit, which is why the Declaration of Independence states, ‘…all men are created equal…’ and why we fought a war to add the 13th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution -- not because we are all exactly the same thing, but because we are equal.“Scott apparently has a simplistic concept of what equality means to most Americans. Does he really believe giving every American access to affordable healthcare is the same thing as giving each child in a classroom the same number of cookies so everybody gets exactly the same thing?“I too believe in freedom, and I believe the Affordable Care Act gives every citizen the freedom to pursue his or her own destiny; a system that allows insurance companies to deny any citizen coverage, however, does not allow each of us the freedom we have been promised.”Scott’s war against the Act is well-established. While still a state representative in November 2009, Scott was the primary sponsor of two bills (H 4171 and H 4181) to block the use of the Act in South Carolina, and while it was still under debate in U.S. Congress.After the Patient Protection & Affordable Health Care Acts passed in March 2010, Scott tried to block it again with a new bill (H 4825).Scott’s first bill to U.S. Congress was H.R. 698, which would “deauthorize and rescind funding” for the healthcare act.Allstate Insurance Company, which Scott represented until winning the 2010 election, sells supplemental health insurance, which is supposed to help with medical costs that ordinary health insurance doesn’t cover. The Affordable Care Act can substantially reduce, if not eliminate, the need for this secondary format of insurance because of the Act’s removals of many policy limitations.Over the last two election cycles, Scott’s received $164,125 in campaign donations from the insurance industry; over $100,000 was donated in this 2012 election cycle alone, making that industry Scott’s top current donor.“Today,” Rose continues, “I am an excited, optimistic person because I believe in freedom, and I believe in equality. I am optimistic because I know, and the voters know, that in this country the two concepts of freedom and equality do go together.”***Also read:Rose has a 'tip' for ScottScott's VAWA vote offensive, says Dem opponent RoseScott's first-year spending high, paid to endorsersRep. Scott votes against personal privacyScott's campaign donations spent on Scott's companies